Nightmares
by NightmareGlitter
Summary: One yr after graduation, Alexis finds herself trapped in a marriage to a 40 yr old CEO. What happens when Chazz comes back into the story? CxA Tech difficulties worked out so new Chap 5, different than sept 9, 07 Conclusion is up
1. Chapter 1

-1This is not my first fanfic, just the first one I could upload. Anyway, it's a CxA fanfic--sorry, I'm using English names 'cause I'm more comfortable with them and I like them better. It's set one year after they graduated, that's really all you need to know. So, hope you like it. Pls RxR NO FLAMES. I work too hard on these...

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or any of the characters, if I did Chazz would be the main character!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Chapter 1:

It was early morning. Alexis gave a soft moan of disappointment and protest as the alarm clock woke her from her dreary dream state. Hurriedly, she silenced it, although there was no one in the house to further awaken. She placed her feet to the hardwood floor and shivered from the chill brought about by the cold, gray rain outside. Feeling grim, she dressed herself in a black, knee length dress, a jean jacket, and sandals. Carelessly, she slipped on her wedding ring without even looking at it. Then, she tied her hair back and picked up her shopping list and purse.

She sighed heavily as she drove down the road, on her way to the grocery store. It hadn't always been this dull and monotonous. It didn't have to be this way. But, then again, it had never been her choice in the first place. She had married the CEO of some business--she didn't know exactly what he did, something involving foreign trade and such--upon her father's insistence. She wished deeply she could've resisted, but too much had been at stake. She bit her lip to try to prevent the tears stinging her eyes, threatening to fall.

'_Every time I look into those gorgeous amber eyes, well, I can't say no to you anymore.'_

She winced and shook the memory away. "No," she thought, "I can't remember that. I can't dwell in the past. I chose my path and I have to keep to it."

She arrived at the store, more depressed than before. Sudden resentment overcame her.

"I could've been rich," she muttered bitterly, slamming the door, "Filthy rich. So rich that I could've had a fountain spewing hundred dollar bills in the foyer."

She roughly grabbed a cart and stormed through the aisles. She was so busy griping that she didn't notice where she was going. She reached for something then crashed into a person standing nearby. She had half the mind to say something nasty instead of apologizing; however, she was startled out of it when she looked up into the person's face.

"Ch-Chazz?" she stammered, shocked. "Y-you? Why...?"

"Alexis? Wow, it's been awhile."

"How are you?" she asked, swallowing hard.

"Fine. And you?"

Again, she swallowed hard. "Well...very...well..." She knew she sounded pathetic, but she was in too much shock to speak properly.

He frowned. "Why be formal?"

"There's no reason to tell you why," she answered, "You know very well why."

"O-kay. Dang, you look different. I mean the way you dress and all." he commented awkwardly.

She coolly sent him a sideways glare. "A lady," she said pointedly, "should look proper and clean, not like a tramp off the streets or a stripper in a club. Do you understand, Princeton?"

"Yes, of course," he said, mimicking her proper speech pattern. "But, please, don't inconvenience yourself. Call me Chazz. Please. Princeton sounds so, so..."

"...Classy? Highbred? Formal? None of which you are."

"What's the matter with you? In high school--"

"High school was a long time ago." she snapped, her voice raising.

"Not really. We only graduated last year."

"It's been long for me," she continued, "a lot has happened, after all. What are you doing here anyway?"

"Vacationing."

She rolled her eyes. "Oh, here we go. You're going to start bragging about how much richer you are than everyone else again."

"Y-you've changed." he said softly, looking hurt.

"As I've said, it's been a long time. I'm a different person now, _Chazz_."

"Yeah, and you never called me or anything. I called you but you never picked up. Neither did you return my calls. What--" He glanced down at her hand and stared sadly. "Th-that's why."

Despite her cold, biting gaze boring into him, warning him, he stared right into her eyes. "Alexis...you're...married." He gave a small laugh of discomfort. "I should've known. After all, you're just so--"

"--Don't." she interrupted.

"And I suppose you have kids, too? Hmmm?"

"No. In fact, I'm still a virgin. I won't let him. I don't feel comfortable with the concept."

"Hmmm...are you--" his eyes searched her own, captivating her, searching her soul til she caught her breath, "--are you perhaps thinking of...someone from your past? An old boyfriend maybe?"

"Let me ask you," he leaned closer to her, making her stiffen, "when he kisses you, does he leave you feeling hollow and empty because it's cold and unfeeling? Does he leave you wanting all the passion and warmth a marriage should have? Does he even kiss you enough? Or only a peck before he leaved for his boring job in a boring cubicle in a boring office building on the other side of town? Hmm?"

"I have no such foolish fantasies! And he does kiss me!" she tried to snap, but rather gasped. Then to herself, "Even if it is only a peck. And what of yourself? Have you jumped from bed to bed? Whore to whore? Do you have children?"

He seemed taken aback. "What a _thing_ for a lady to say! Alexis, really! You surprise me. I'm sorry to disappoint you, but no, no, and no. I'm a virgin, too. And I don't think I ever will have sex. Or find a woman. After all, I only had eyes for one...one...lady."

She backed away. "This has gone far enough. _Goodbye_, Princeton."

"Bye...Lexy." he whispered as she walked away.

That evening as she banged around in the kitchen, fixing dinner, her husband, Charles, looked up, for once caring about his wife's mood. Probably only because she was getting violent and unladylike.

"Darling," he said almost in disinterest, "What seems to be the matter?"

"Seems?" she snapped, forgetting herself, then regaining her composure, answered calmly and obediently although her wild, raging soul screamed and demanded escape, "It's nothing."

"Did you see someone you knew today?"

She froze. He knew. How did he know? She almost panicked as she tried to come up with an appropriate, yet appeasing, response.

"Oh, oh, well, yes. But it's nothing, really. It-it really wasn't too upsetting."

Usually, Charles would leave it at that. But not that day.

"Did you," he asked coldly, "See Chazz? Did you or didn't you?"

She winced, already feeling as though numerous blows were being reigned down upon her. "Well, I can explain. We only bumped into each other, nothing more. It only caused...bad memories to resurface, that's all. Really." She forced a weak smile.

He accepted her response and left it at that. She sighed in relief, realizing how close she'd come to arousing his anger against her. She always had to tiptoe on eggshells around him. Although usually dull and drab, he was easily angered, and if he was angered, he would strike out at her.

"What is it with me and hot tempered men?" she muttered to herself.

She had no choice, however. She'd married the old fool, now she was stuck with him, like it or not. As the rain fell harder, she surrendered the last few pieces of chopped onion to the boiling pot of stew and watched them sink below the thick surface. She felt as though she were choking.

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Hope you liked it! Chap 2 will be up soon, as long as I don't hafta work on senior exit. I hate being a senior!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! XP


	2. Chapter 2

-1Ok, so it's Chapter 2 now...here's where it starts to get interesting. I hope my story won't get too, um, inappropriate, though I'm not inclined to write, um...too graphically in language, violence, or, um, _other_. I wish they had a T+ rating...not that it'll be too bad, I'm just paranoid. Anyway, I hope you like it, 'cause it's certainly a nice break from school. : D And now, without further adieu, I present Chapter 2. XD (that was lame)

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Chazz, though I wish I did!!!! (Mwahaha )

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Chapter 2:

Alexis tossed and turned, trying to wake herself up. All she could see was black, all she could feel was thickness suffocating her lungs. She felt as though she were breathing heavy water, only worse. She wasn't sure which way was up or which way was down, so she had no clue where to go or where she was. Suddenly, the darkness lifted. At first, she thought she was hallucinating. Quickly, she snapped to her senses, seeing Chazz in front of her.

"Chazz, what are you--"

"Shhh," he held a finger to his lips, gesturing for her to be silent.

Bewildered, she stared as he outstretched his hand towards her. Fear rose up inside her, choking her once more as claws encircled her thin ankle. She tried to scream, but the noise was muffled by the substance she was suspended in.

"Trust me." Chazz told her, holding his hand out farther, "I can save you."

"You didn't last time." she protested, tears threatening to fall from her amber eyes. "I called; I needed you--you never came."

"I didn't come," he responded calmly, "because I was always there. You just never looked hard enough."

"What?"

"Trust me," he told her again, as he began to fade.

"No, wait, please!" She grasped for his hand, but her own slipped nimbly through the transparent form, turning it into a wisp of fine mist.

"Trust me." His voice echoed through the darkness as his image faded and was transfigured into a dark, demonic beast.

The demon, as she was now sure it was, seized her by the throat, digging its claws into her windpipe. Blood gushed over its hand, staining it with crimson rivers. Alexis screamed in a rasp, then, all was quiet.

Gradually, she became aware of the gentle ticking of the clock and the rapid beating of her heart. She sat up slowly, shaken, and wiped the sweat that had accumulated on her cool, clammy skin. Realizing that it had only been a nightmare, she arose to prepare breakfast, pondering the meaning of the dream. Soon, her thoughts began to morph.

For the past several weeks, she'd been thinking of Chazz. In addition to reminiscing, she also had to deal with Charles, who found her "new" obsession to be both agitating and exasperating. Not only did he feel it, he showed it. However, what he didn't know was that Chazz wasn't actually a new obsession. Alexis had frequently thought of him during her boring days as the trophy wife of a forty year old CEO. How she despised her lifestyle! Charles forced her to dress a certain way, and keep house a certain way. Everything had to be done as he pleased and precisely that. She had to be proper, and a lady. It was smothering her.

She tried not to feel hatred towards him and her father--for forcing her into this dreadful marriage--however, she found it to be too difficult. Not only was he boring, stubborn, pious, and proper, but he would also yell at her. Lately, he'd gotten worse about yelling. It was as though he thought she couldn't hear him at all.

"Alexis!" Charles shouted, interrupting her thoughts for the fifth time that morning, "Hurry up with my breakfast and my coffee."

"Coming." she seethed through her teeth as she hurriedly scraped his eggs onto a plate and poured his coffee.

He only sat at the table to read the paper, not even bothering to go retrieve his own plate. "Stocks are down." he commented, frowning.

"Oh, please, God, not again..." she thought, rolling her eyes, "He can't talk about anything but stocks and shareholders and rates and exchange and his dumb, ol' business. Ugh! Even worse, once he gets started, he never stops. I hope he doesn't start on deregulation..."

Much to her dismay, Charles began on his favorite topic. "Great. Now the company will lose part of its share to Shelton Enterprises--"

She groaned inwardly hearing this. Anytime "the company" lost stock to its competitor, Shelton, Charles raged about it for weeks.

Charles continued "--I don't understand how he can make any money! Do people not realize that one day his mismanagement will leave them with nothing? They do not have a 401(k) plan either!"

"No!" Alexis thought, "He's gonna start on company benefits now!"

"My company has higher benefits. What I am talking about is higher pension plans, more vacation time, employee injury insurance, coverage, retirement plans, graduated income..."

It was all Alexis could do to keep from screaming bloody murder. She prayed it would end. Slowly, she counted to ten, holding her breath.

"Alexis, we need to talk about something." he began, out of the blue.

"Very well," she seethed, gritting her teeth. She placed his food on the table and sat across from him, far, far away.

"Aren't you going to eat?" he asked.

"No, I'm not hungry. Now, what do you need to talk to me about?"

"Well, we have been married for seven months now, and you are still a virgin..."

"Oh, NO!!!" she thought, "I can hardly bear to live with him. There's no way I can have sex with him! I hate him desperately..."

Charles continued, "I think it would be best if we had sex. What I mean to say is, we have needs, or rather, I do, and we should consummate the relationship. I do not want another man to strip you of your virginity, because I am your husband. And, since you are my wife, you must do as I tell you, for God has given me authority over you, the weaker sex in every aspect. That being said, we will have sex tonight. I am ordering you, and you will let me. Do you understand?"

"B-but..." she sputtered, "I-I c-can't!"

"That would be 'I cannot;' however, you can and you must. Do not question the authority God has placed given to me to place over you; you are questioning His judgment. And do not even think of questioning the set bounds of sex and the requirement of it in a healthy, stable, God-given marriage relationship. God has commanded that wives give their husbands their due affection, thus must you give to me your most precious asset--your virginity. No longer shall you keep that which is no longer your own. Your body and your virginity belong to me; therefore, it is lawful and it is good that I take it from you. By keeping it, you are being selfish, unlawful, and unjust--you are disobeying God's command to render to me what is mine. I wish to have sex, I feel the need, and you, being my wife, are obliged to satisfy my needs whenever I have them, whether you want to or not. You are also obliged to overcome your desires when I do not feel like sex. You are to only give in to my wished and needs when I feel like it. You are not to ask me, I will ask you. And when I do, you will serve me no matter how you are feeling. Do you understand?"

"This is too much." she thought, then said boldly, "And if I refuse?"

Charles stood up. "Then your father will carry out his threat and you will be severely punished. Understand? I said, do you understand?!!!"

He stepped closer, causing her to back away. "I-I..."

"Dammit, woman, why do you never listen?!!!!!!!!!!"

He looked at her coldly, then overturned the table in one swift motion. The dishes crashed to the freshly mopped floors, spilling food and liquid.

"I said, do you understand?!!!" he screamed again.

She dared to be silent.

He smacked her across the face so hard it knocked the breath out of her. She fell to the floor, blood streaming from her nose and mouth.

"CHAZZY!!!!" she cried in pain.

"WHAT?!!!!!!!!!!!! I never wish to hear you speak that brute's name again!"

He beat her until a puddle of blood stained the tiles of the floor. She couldn't comprehend what was happening. All she could do was crumple in a ball and cover her head with her arms to protect herself from the blows. After awhile, she begin to feel numb. Just when she thought she couldn't take it anymore, he left her in the midst of the broken crockery and the splintered wood. The tablecloth entwined around her body, soaking up her blood. But nothing caught her tears or held back her sobs as they shook her body relentlessly.

She was drowning again.

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I know, a real downer. Anyway, Chapter 3 will hopefully be up tomorrow. Since I don't have AP English anymore, I have time to do this, YAY!!!! In a month or two, though, senior exit will be getting in my way. In case you don't know, that's a research paper and a product that shows outgrowth from the research. I did the paper my junior year, but now I have to develop a product and a speech for the board to listen to. Xo No fun. Still, I'll have you guys, and I'll keep posting stories. Poor Alexis. What a jerk. And he's too religious. XP Anyway, see ya next time: )


	3. Chapter 3

-1Ok, so after another hectic day at school, I can finally relax and unwind. Too bad I have a quiz on Nicaragua in Spanish 4 tomorrow. I'm not sure I can remember everything...well, at least I got my problem guy off my back...thnx L.H.!!!! Can't say the same for Alexis though...Things will only get worse...

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Chapter 3:

Alexis frantically searched the phonebook. Fearfully, she glanced up at the clock. She didn't have long before Charles returned from work. He'd probably be even angrier than he had been that morning. He'd probably beat her again. And she knew for a fact that he'd be expecting to have sex with her. Thinking about this made her all the more desperate for a solution. However, she didn't know what to do.

After searching the names beginning with "P" for half an hour, Alexis gave up.

"Maybe," she said to herself, "his cell phone number is still good. Maybe I can contact him that way."

She dug through her drawers, looking for it. When she couldn't find it, she sat down and thought.

Then, in a horrified realization: "I'm so dumb. Of course I remember it by heart."

She snatched the phone and dialed Chazz's cell phone number. She got through to the voicemail, but was too afraid to leave a message. It'd be too late by the time he got it anyway.

She erased the call from the phone's memory, knowing Charles would look through the call log to make sure she hadn't made any "forbidden" calls. If he knew she'd made a call to someone other than him or her parents, he'd beat her for sure.

She resorted to calling every five star hotel in the area. But when none of them had a "Princeton" staying there, she thought hopelessly that he'd gone home. She tried to call him again with the same results.

Giving up, she sank to the floor and cried. Fear crept upon her. She didn't want to be beaten. Neither did she want to lose her virginity to Charles. Not only was he old, but he was also coldhearted. Not to mention that he was not in the least attractive. In fact, he wasn't her type in the least. She felt devastated.

"No," she said to herself, regaining her fiery spirit, "no! I won't do it. I won't surrender my body to him. I may be married to him, but it's not his--not his for the taking, like I'm a piece of meat. I'm not a piece of meat, I'm a person, and I deserve just as much respect as him. These are modern times, after all. And besides, my body, heart, and soul belong to another. He won't get his filthy, stinkin', greedy hands on me. I won't let him. He can beat me all he wants. I'll never give in to him--never! And I won't let him rape me either."

She stood up, erased the call log once more, and washed her face. Then, she got in the car.

"If I can't find Chazz by calling around, then I'll go out and look for him myself. There's no way I'm going to let that fool rule my life. Chazz will protect me, I just gotta find him."

After searching for hours, she again felt like giving up. "Do I have to go to his house?" she wondered, "He's liable not to be there, or to have moved. Where could he be?"

In desperation, she went back to the grocery store where they'd been reunited most unpleasantly a few weeks earlier.

"There's no way he'd be here." she thought, stubborn tears gathering at the corners of her eyes.

"Chazz," she whimpered, "Where are you? I really, really, really need you now...more than ever--"

"Alexis?"

She froze, fear paralyzing her. She didn't recognize the voice at first, expecting Charles to have found her. Slowly, she turned.

For a moment, Alexis and Chazz stood still, staring into one another's eyes, understanding each other. She searched his eyes...and his soul. He did the same to her.

"Y-you..." she gasped.

There were mere feet between them, yet she felt miles away from him. She continued to gawk at him for several moments, uncertain of what she must do.

"You came..."

Without another word, she stepped over to him and embraced him. Surprised, he remained stiff for a moment, then he finally returned the gesture.

"Are you Ok? Did something happen?" he asked, concerned.

"Let's just get out of here and I'll tell you." she sniffled, overcome by emotion.

"Ok."

She followed him through the check out line, then to his car. They remained silent until they reached the parking lot.

"You can get in. I'll drive you." he offered, breaking the wall of silence between them.

"I kinda left my car..."

"It's Ok. I'll have one of my servants pick it up. Just lock the keys in the car. Don't worry, he'll be able to get them out, then he'll take it to my place so you can get home...Unless you want him to drive it to your house and have me take you home."

"No, no...I'll just go with option one." She found herself saying.

After locking the keys in her car, she climbed into the passenger side of Chazz's expensive, luxurious sports car. She waited for him to pull out of the parking lot before she began to talk. She felt more comfortable moving at a steady rate of forty five miles per an hour than sitting still in the car. After all, Charles might happen upon her and Chazz, and if he did, he'd probably murder her.

She ended up telling Chazz everything--about how Charles treated her, how miserable she was, and how she didn't want to have sex with him and wanted away from him.

"My body doesn't belong to him, you know. I don't love him. In fact, I hate him!" she told him, "He can't do whatever he wants to me! But, unfortunately, I can't hold him off. He's much stronger than me, whether I like to admit it or not. That's why I need you. Most of my life, I've told myself that I could handle anything on my own. This is different. I can't fend for myself. I want to keep believing that I can take care of myself, but I can't be independent anymore. Not when someone abusive is in my life. Bottom line is, I need your protection. If you would be willing, I mean."

"Of course I would! There's no way that I'm gonna leave a lady in such a situation. I'll cream that abusive, little, mother---" he growled, but cut himself off before he could cuss in front of her.

She stared at him for a moment, stunned at what he'd been about to say. Color flushed his cheeks as he cleared his throat, embarrassed and ashamed.

"Sorry, Lex. I don't wanna say anything like that in front of anyone, particularly you. It's just, that Charles pisses me off so bad. I just wanna...shoot him or something. That's not right of him. I'll KILL him. Nobody should be treated like that, but especially not a lady. Especially not you! You deserve better, you really do. And I intend to make sure that he never lays a finger on you ever again. You'll be safe with me."

She bit her lip, then smiled a little. "I sure missed your temper. At least you contain it...for the most part. At least you keep it to mild yelling and name calling. And, thankfully, you don't direct those comments toward me."

He blushed again. "Uhhhh, right. I try...seriously, though, if your father knew we were talking to each other, we'd be screwed. But, really, you gotta believe me, I didn't do it! I was framed..."

I know, Chazz, I know. It's Ok. Just...don't let him take my virginity. It wasn't meant for him. It's not his."

"I know." he said softly, pulling into a driveway and stopping the car.

"It's yours." Alexis whispered, "It always was. Always will be. Please don't let another man steal it from you!"

"Another man's already stolen my place, whether we like it or not." Chazz whispered, squeezing her left hand and staring at the gold band encircling her finger. "You were to be my wife..."

"I'm so sorry," she whispered, tears coming to her eyes again, "I'm sorry for everything, especially for pulling away from you and treating you like that. I just wanted to escape the pain. You know, try to tell myself it wasn't true, that I really was Ok."

He swallowed hard, yet looked indignant. "It's not you fault. It's not my fault. These things happen. But I did mess up. I should've never let them take you from me like that. I was such a fool." His expression turned sulky and gloomy as he dwelled up this thought.

"You couldn't do anything," she protested.

As though he didn't fully comprehend her words, he continued, "Maybe now I can redeem myself. I can turn this around if I try. Unlike last time. I gave up. I gave up you and our happiness. I abandoned you when you needed me most. Why do you want to return to someone as stupid as me?"

She was silent for a moment, then touched his cheek. "You learned from your mistake. And you're a better man for it. You could give me a life better than he can, despite youth and inexperience. We'll learn from each other, just like we should. We'll make it together...You're the best man for me."

He blushed. "Aww, Lex..."

"I thought you'd left..." she began.

"I couldn't. Once I saw you, and found out from locals that you live nearby, I bought a place here to stay for awhile. I wanted to see you again. I went by the store all the time asking about you. I knew we couldn't be together, but I wanted to make sure you were Ok, that he was treating you well. Now, I'm glad I stayed. I figured you might need me, might miss me. I sure missed you. I had hopes that I'd find you and we could be together. I looked for you all this time we've been separated..."

"Oh, Chazz..."

They threw their arms around each other for a moment, then stepped out of the car and caught each other in a tighter, closer embrace. Memories and emotions came flooding back to her as she snuggled closer, absorbing his warmth. She ran her fingers through his thick, spiky black hair and sighed. Resting her chin on his shoulder and feeling his hear beating next to hers, she told him more about Charles, who he was, his prominence in the town, and his position as CEO. She told him about how religious he was, and about what a monotonous workaholic he was. She told him how Charles wouldn't let her call anyone or go see anyone, and how he programmed her cell phone to only her he make calls to him and to 911.

"If I want to do anything," she told him, "I have to call him first and clear it through him. I'm practically under house arrest. I'm surprised I can drive the car at all. But today I took it without permission. He'll know. He has a GPS tracker on it, and I don't know how to disable it. I'm scared. He's so abusive! Look what he did to me."

She showed him all the bruises and cuts, as well as the red marks across her body. She showed him the places where Charles had hit her with a chair, where he'd smashed a lamp on her, and the place where he'd thrown his beer mug at her.

"He blows up over everything. If I talk 'improperly' with lots of contractions or slang, he hits me. If I say anything he doesn't like, even if it's something I can't control, such as the weather, he'll beat me. If he gets home and has had a bad day at work, he'll scream at me then he'll beat me. I'd leave him, but I'm too afraid to. I'm afraid to call for help. You'd end up getting thrown in jail since you were framed. It's so evil that they'd blackmail you like that! But you're the only one I can go to, that I can trust, ironically. I hope you don't--"

"It's Ok. I'll spend a thousand years in jail if I can protect you from that freak. I'll save you if it's the last thing I do; I promise."

He hugged her to his body again. "It's Ok. I'll protect you until I die, whether you're my wife or his. That's my duty and my promise to you. It always was."

"Thank-you, Chazz!" She squeezed him tightly, then in the heat of emotion--her hatred and resentment for Charles and her love and commitment for Chazz--she yanked her wedding ring off and threw it as far as she could out into the yard.

"What will he do when he--" Chazz began.

"Shhh, it's the first step into my newly acquired freedom. I won't put up with him. And I won't have sex with him. What I need you to do is find me a lawyer that will help me get out of this. Someone that'll believe me when I say I'm a virgin. I'll tell everything. You need a lawyer, too. And you should hire a private investigator to figure out who actually did this. And one last thing..."

"What?"

"Do you still have--"

"I'd never get rid of them."

"Could I have it back?"

"But, Alexis, if Charles sees--"

"It's Ok, I'll wear it around a chain."

"Ok." Chazz pulled something out of his pocket and pressed it into the palm of her hand.

Seeing it was a chain, she clasped it around her neck. She stared down at the glittering engagement ring before she dropped it down the front of her dress, next to her heart. Looking up at Chazz with trust in her eyes, she told him, "We will get married, and this time, we won't be stopped at our wedding because of false accusations. You will get what's yours and only yours."

"It won't happen again," he agreed, scowling, "We'll do whatever it takes. We'll take this guy to court. And, yes, we'll hire lawyers and a private investigator. I won't back down until we find out how this happened."

"But I have a feeling," she said, scowling as well, "Charles had something to do with it."

They frowned, looking up at the sky, then Alexis followed Chazz into his mansion. Charles would not get away with it. Neither would her father.

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Well, that's it for today. In the next chapter, you'll find out exactly what happened in Chazz and Alexis' deep, dark past.


	4. Chapter 4

-1Ok, so I haven't updated in two days because I was tired XO, I had to go to church , and I had to go to a family reunion XP. Friday, I did a stupid thing which ate up my time. My friend's mom came to school and brought us ice cream. I didn't finish mine, so I put it in my lunch bag. Ummm, what was I thinking? I got ice cream all over my lunch bag, my oversized purse, my sweater, and horror of all horrors, my probably $150 English book O.o At least I wasn't the only stupid person that day. In AFM, some genius goes up to the teacher with blood streaming down his arm. The teacher yells for everyone to shut up, and someone to go to the office. She asked the kid why he did what he did, and he said "I didn't think it'd go in that deep." What'd he do? He stapled his arm. XDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD My school has sooooo many smart ppl!!!

In other news, I apologize for religious content of Chapter 2. If it offended anyone, I'm sorry. It was meant for ironic purposes, I just forgot the note. I'm sorry.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Chapter 4

Alexis sat crouched behind her broken down car, staring in frightened dismay at the black clouds rumbling and swirling over head. The winds whipped vehemently at her hair and clothes, tearing her away from her secure hold to the side of the car. As the winds grew stronger, she began to fret, wondering if the ominous weather meant to foreshadow her inevitable death.

She stood up, struggling to keep her feet placed firmly on the ground, to keep from being blown away. She peeked over the hood of the car and looked to the right then again to the left. The road was completely empty. Desperate, she surveyed her surrounding, hoping to see a stray house. All she saw was an endless line of vacant fields and trees. There was not a soul in sight.

Swallowing hard to try to keep her composure, she reached into her purse. Trembling, she tried to call for help on her cell phone. There was no signal. Just as she thought she'd gotten it to work, the wind tore it away from her grasp. She gave a small cry as it disappeared into a dust devil.

She stood still, trying to think of what to do. Gradually, she became aware of a low rumble that grew increasingly louder until she heard the roaring of a train. At first, she was confused. She had not seen any train tracks. Slowly, she began to realize that her fate was sealed.

She hurried around the other side of the car, searching for refuge from the violent force about to overtake her. Tears of fright spilled from her amber eyes as the massive force raced closer.

"ALEXIS!!!" someone shouted over the hurricane-force winds.

"Wh-what?" she whimpered, whipping her head around.

"GRAB MY HAND! I"LL GET YOU OUTTA HERE!!!" Chazz stood in front of her, clutching the trunk of the car and holding one thin, pale hand out to her. "TRUST ME. NOTHING WILL EVER HURT YOU."

She swallowed hard again, but seized his hand. The two ran for the cover of a bridge. It seemed as though the more they ran, though, the farther away it became. Just then, a burst of particularly strong wind tore their hands apart. She squeezed her eyes shut and bit back a scream as she went through the air, waiting to hear the crunch of her bones being crushed as she was flung about like a rag doll.

Jumping, she awoke. At first, she was afraid that Charles might have done something to her. Then, she remembered that she was safe because she wasn't home.

Still trying to catch her breath and calm the pounding of her heart in her ears, she gazed about the guest room. Her memory came flooding back to her. How she'd flung her wedding ring across the yard then decided to spend the night at Chazz's mansion.

She groped the inside of her nightgown until she felt the cool of metal against her sweaty palm. Pulling the chain out, she watched as the diamonds glistened brightly in the moonlight. Sighing, she eased back down amongst the soft, feather pillows; however, she was anything but relaxed.

She began to think about her past and what it might have to do with the nightmares she'd been having.

In high school, she and Chazz had both gone to Duel Academy. At first, they hadn't paid much attention to each other, or, rather, she thought they hadn't. In reality, he'd adored her since prep school, and when he finally overcame his fear of confessing his love, he'd confessed it in a manner that was too strong for her. Because of his rash and hasty actions, she'd rejected him. He had not only disgusted her, he'd disturbed her too. She had been worried he might start stalking her; however, he wasn't the one she'd had to worry about.

When he'd pulled back, she'd given in to him, and decided that she did like him, after all. So they started dating. Soon, they'd fallen deeply in love and become best friends. They'd told each other everything and always sacrificed for the other. She'd always had his shoulder to cry on, and he, likewise, always could find refuge from his cold, abusive family in her arms.

His parents didn't mind their relationship; however, her parents didn't approve. At first, they hadn't done anything about it. As they grew closer, though, her parents grew livid. They didn't want Alexis to be dating, especially not Chazz Princeton. However, despite the fact that the world was against their relationship, nothing could tear them apart. It didn't matter what her parents thought, what Slade and Jagger thought, or what Jaden and Zane thought. Nothing in the world mattered when they had each other. How naive they'd been.

After six months of dating and spending all their time together, she'd moved in his dorm room with him. They'd done most everything, except for have sex. She'd even slept next to him a few times, even though she'd known it was wrong. And several times, they'd come close to having sex, but something always happened to prevent them, such as a friend knocking on the door.

---------------------------------

One day, Chazz took Alexis into an empty classroom.

"Lex," he told her, "we can't do this forever. We can't hold back. We can't control ourselves. I know we've talked about it a lot, and we know what we want. We know we want to stay together for the rest of our lives. That's why I'm asking you this today."

He got down on one knee and held out an open box with a very expensive, almost priceless, ring in it. "Alexis Rhodes, will you marry me?"

She stared into his eyes. Shakily, she nodded. "Yes."

He placed the ring on her finger. They smiled at each other, never having been in so much ecstasy. Little did she know how foolish her dreams were.

----------------------------------------------------

Alexis remembered how they were to be married in a month and how they'd hurried to get ready. Her parents did not need to sign for her--she was sixteen. But Chazz's parents had to sign for him since he was sixteen and the law stated that he must be eighteen. Nevertheless, the plans went along smoothly. And on her wedding day, she'd never been happier.

They'd gotten to the ceremony, and the minister had recited the vows. Chazz was about to say 'I do' when her father and one of the employees from the Princeton Corporation--Charles Grayton--burst in. They'd taken Alexis and Chazz aside privately to speak with them on 'an important matter.'

Then, they charged Chazz with the embezzlement of millions of dollars from the Princeton Corporation. Much to Alexis' shock, they'd produced evidence, such as pictures and bank statements made out in his name. The deposit slips even had his signature on them, as well as the correct amount that they'd named.

Chazz was confused by this accusation, and had denied all charges made against him. Even though the odds were against him, Alexis believed him. She'd taken his hand and stood up for him, telling Charles and her father to back off.

"I'm going to marry him and you can't stop us with this. I'll stand by him even if he has to go to jail because I know Chazz would never do this. He's one of the heirs to the corporation. Why would he ruin his future and take what would be his eventually? And what's more, his share of the inheritance is far more than that measly amount. Why would he waste his chance at an inheritance for a couple of million bucks? Even now he already has so much! More than what was stolen, actually. No, someone else did it, not my Chazzy!"

"You may believe so," her father had said, "but if you don't end this wedding right now, we'll tell his parents and the police. And we have proof. You have nothing to back your word and his 'innocence.'"

"I won't--" she'd begun, then looked at Chazz.

"It's what's best," he'd whispered, "It's Ok, we'll have another chance to get married once this clears up I promise."

"Ok." she'd reluctantly agreed. She'd truly believed they would have another chance. They never would.

Soon afterwards, her father forced them to move, and Charles pulled out of the Princeton Corporation to develop his sect into its own company. She'd found this to be awfully suspicious, but never said anything for fear of Chazz's reputation.

When she graduated, her father had used Chazz's 'crime' as blackmail, and forced her to marry Charles. She'd cried and begged him not to.

"He's a good man. He'll provide for you. Plus, he's mature. He'll make a good husband for you." her father had told her, "You won't have billions of dollars, but you'll have a good life. You'll be well off. Besides, he needs a young wife due to his position in society."

"If he's so great why is he still single?" she'd argued.

"I'm not sure. I think his wife died..."

"Huh. So I'm rebound?"

"He's watched you from a distance for some time now. And he's chosen you out of all the girls on this earth. Be grateful."

"I'll say he's watched me." she'd muttered.

She had noticed. He hadn't just watched her, he'd followed her, stalked her with lustful eyes. She'd recognized immediately that he was a greedy, selfish man. Not like Chazz. Chazz could be selfish, but in a different way. He was a good person deep inside, and he did care about the welfare of others. Charles, on the other hand, pretended to be a good man. He was snaky and sly, like a fox. He was out to take what he wanted, even if he had to use people, step on them, abuse them.

Through fraud and deceit, Charles had conducted his business and made a name for himself. Amazingly, no one had found out, except for her. For this reason, he made sure to keep her in her place by beating her, figuring that she'd try to tell. Of course, she could say nothing, do nothing. They still had blackmail and 'proof.' Alexis had no proof. She had eyewitness accounts, but only her own. It was her word against his. And he would win due to his prominence and reputation as 'honest.'

She remembered having cried silently all through her marriage ceremony. When he'd kissed her, she'd shuddered coldly. She had not kissed him back.

She remembered hiding from him on their wedding night, having locked herself in the bathroom and faked being sick from too much wine. She had, in the end, grown ill, but from grief and anxiety.

All these months, she'd gotten her way out of sex. She'd either been 'too tired,' 'sick,' 'on her period,' or had given him so much wine at dinner it'd put him to sleep. She'd even grown so desperate as to drug his food, which she did frequently. That is, until he grew suspicious and would not eat it until she confessed and stopped. Now, she had no way out of it. Except through Chazz.

It was time they stopped running from the inevitable. It was time they stopped being unhappy. It was time they stood up for themselves and exposed Charles for the man he really was. It was time that they could finally have what they wanted, needed, deserved. It was time they could be together again. She would not run. Chazz would protect her. Through love, they'd prevail. Charles' reign as King of Grayton Industries, of the town of Levitt, and her was over.

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There you have it, Chazz and Alexis' sad, sad past. : ( But it's not even close to the climax yet!!!! I'll put more up, so long as I don't pack ice cream in my bag or get attacked by Staple Boy O.o ---oh no!

BTW---I can't find one of my stories. It's on the Complete list and on my account, but not on the list of "All Status" or something like that. It's called "This Is Why I'm Hot" so if you see it, please let me know. Either it ran away, Atticus stole it, or Adrian got mad at me for writing it and deleted it from the all status page.


	5. Chapter 5

-1 Now that I have some technical difficulties worked out, I can put up the real Chapter 5. Hope you like it!

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Chapter 5

The world was cold. Everywhere Alexis turned, she felt cold. There was no noise, and there was hardly any light. Once more, she felt herself suspended in something. This time, however, it wasn't liquid. She was encased in ice. Both above and below her were thousands of miles of ice, and there was nothing else to be seen. She wasn't even sure if she could see. She felt numb inside. She realized then, she was dead.

Alexis woke with a start as the alarm clock went off. Strange, she'd never heard any alarm clock sound quite like that before. She opened her eyes and tried to sit up. A hand clenched around her throat, suppressing the rising scream. Before she could see who had a hold of her, she was hit with a blunt object in the side of the head. Her vision swam, becoming blurry, then, tinged with red, became black as night.

She once again awoke, only this time, to see Charles' angry face. She could not help but give a tiny yelp of surprise, and pain.

"Shut up!" he smashed his fist to her temple, causing her to crumple in a limp heap at the foot of the bed.

She gasped as her head throbbed, and as nausea overtook her. "Wh-wha--how?"

"I said, SHUT UP!!!" He slammed her weak body against the wall, pressing himself painfully close.

"Now that I have your attention," he growled through clenched teeth, "I want you to listen to me, and you'd better listen closely. You'd better have sex with me now, or..."

He paused for a brief moment. Her insides turned into ice when she felt hard, cool, metal pressed snugly against her head. Her temple throbbed against the mouth of the pistol.

"...or I'll kill you."

She stared up at Charles with terrified eyes. "You'd rape me?"

He tightened his already painful hold around her wrists. She continued to look upon him in horror as a wry, wicked smirk came to his dry lips. He licked them greedily, them continued, in an almost mocking tone.

"My dear Alexis...it is not rape if we are married. Does the law give a damn if I rape my wife? No, because in God's eyes, you are my property. A Christian must act accordingly, you know."

"You're no Christian," she seethed, "You're a hypocrite! You never practice what you teach, and God doesn't want anyone to be treated this way. He wants all humans to be respected. You're stomping all over the doctrine you claim to uphold."

"I wouldn't be so quick to judge such if I were in your situation, young lady. Do not question God. He has already set the roles for all human beings, He has already determined the events that shall take place. Besides, right now, He has given me the choice, and the privilege, of whether to preserve your life or end it, depending on the path you choose. Will you choice righteousness and salvation, or will you choose sin and wickedness?"

"Wh-what kind of person are you?" She cried, trying to wrest from his iron grip, "You're not a Christian! Not even remotely so! More like a wolf in sheep's clothing. You're more like a child of Satan than anything--"

He pulled the trigger. "Sweet dreams..."

She felt something hot graze her ear. Trembling, tears welling in her eyes, she realized he had not killed her.

"...if you keep this up, that is." he finished, his blue-gray eyes staring coldly and indifferently into her own. "Now, I want you to know I mean business. So give in, or next time I won't miss."

"Wh-where's..."

He laughed hoarsely. "Chazz? Where is Chazz? Well, he won't be coming to rescue you if that's what you're thinking. No, it will be a long time before you see him again...or not so long if you keep this up!"

Her heart thumped wildly. "What do you mean? You didn't--"

"He's none of your concern for now. If I were you, I'd be more concerned about my own welfare."

"If you killed him," she continued, as though she didn't hear him, "then I don't wanna live anymore. Nothing matters if he's dead, because he's the only man I'll ever love! I'll never give in to you. NEVER!!!!"

"Well, then, what ever would you do if he were alive and found that I'd killed you, hm? He'd end his life just as soon, and without any second thoughts or questions, either. Imagine, how fitting an end! Just like Romeo and Juliet, two lovers who want to be together, but whom are not destined to be together. You'd both end up dead. Now what good would that do either of you? If you want to do something to help him, then forget him and accept me as your husband. Allow him to move on and find another woman."

"Do you ever wonder why I never accepted you as my husband?" she quipped, meaning for it to only be rhetorical, "It's because I never chose you. I was never your wife. You speak of destiny? Well, what of God, then? It is said that one cannot serve two masters. So why try to heed God yet bend to the winds of fate? How can there be God and fate? If fate has plans for certain events to take place accordingly, then why do we need God? Why do we then pray and try to abide by His laws? Why need any sort of law at all? You see, Charles, there is so much wrong with your theory, it's not hard to figure out you're a fraud. Fate indicates that everything just happens, like evolution. The concept of God indicates that everything is planned. You can't have both."

His eyes narrowed at her, his expression turned sour and livid. "Well, in that case, we'll skip the easy way and do it the hard way."

Before she had any time to react, Charles slammed her several more times against the wall, making her dizzy. Soon, she felt as though her senses had been knocked out of her. He continued to slam her against the wall until the breath was knocked out of her.

"Stop," she gasped, "Please...stop."

He shoved her limp body to the bed. She continued to gasp as her head ached sharply, and as foam rose in her throat. A warm, crimson stream trickled down the side of her head, soaking her hair and staining the crisp, linen bed sheets. She began to cough.

It didn't matter to him that she was bleeding or incompetent. Nor did it matter that she was gagging and choking as she threw up. He let her finish, though, before he stripped her clothes off.

Her bones ached from being slammed against the wall; however, a renewed determination arose from within her. She fought him off with all that she had, until he resorted to beating her again. But he didn't knock her out.

Deep inside, she knew why he didn't knock her out. It was so she could experience the pain of being raped. She lost all hope as he stripped himself.

"No, don't..." she gasped as he seized her by the arms.

"You've gotten away too long." he told her, shoving her down.

"No, please..."

No matter how much she begged for him not to do it, he wouldn't listen. He was resolute on his decision. It had to be done.

Alexis tried desperately one more time to hold him off. Finally, her weak body gave out on her and she lay trapped beneath him, unable to comprehend what had just happened.

She felt even sicker, and began to throw up again. He paid her no attention, only continued the dirty, inhumane deed. Seeing how he didn't care, she gave deep, heaving sobs, only interrupted by short, sharp breaths and continued regurgitation.

After several minutes, she found she could not breathe due to her sobbing. Not to mention he was crushing her bruised, broken body and suffocating her already dying soul. She felt the fire inside her being quelled, and the life withering away into nothingness.

After what seemed like an eternity, he arose. "Get up." he commanded heartlessly.

Still sobbing, she eased herself to a sitting position, holding herself in a self-conscious hug.

"Get dressed."

She only did as she was told, having no more fight left within her. All was hopeless now. It wouldn't matter if she died. It would've been better if he'd killed her.

Much to her horror, when she looked up at him with injured amber eyes, she found herself staring down the mouth of the pistol.

"I bet you're wondering what happened to my first wife."

She shook her head violently, creeping back within the refuge of a corner.

"Well, you're going to find out anyway. I shot her then threw her lifeless corpse in a swimming pool. No one ever found out I did it. And guess what, I don't plan to end that tradition!"

She cowered in the corner, arms over her head for protection. She saw her life passing before her eyes. And just as she squeezed her eyes shut and let the comforting darkness surround her, she felt cold again. She was numb inside, and suspended in time. There was nothing above her and nothing below her. She felt dead again, only this time, she was sure it was for real.

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Ok, so that was soooo sad. But please don't stop reading. There will be more chapters. You'll just have to find out what happens. I love y'all. : )


	6. Chapter 6

-1Hey, guys, it's been a few days, huh? I'm sorry, I like to update on a daily basis, but too much was getting in my way. Like school...grrrrr w (fangs). Anyway, I'm gonna try to keep working on this story. When it ends, though, I'll start on my next one. And if all my loyal fans will check it out...then my face will look like this : D.

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Chapter 6

Charles placed his finger on the trigger and started to squeeze. Just before he could finish, though, there was the sound of breaking glass from downstairs. Seeing how he was distracted, Alexis seized the opportunity to run. She rushed down the stairs, sides throbbing painfully from the bruises, as shot rang out through the hall.

Once in the kitchen, her weak injured body gave out on her. Her knees buckled, and she fell face down on the cool, tile floor. Coughing heavily, she tried to push herself up, tried to persevere. She told herself it was necessary for survival. That was all that mattered then, that Charles didn't kill her. Any death was better than to die by his hand.

She seized a chair leg and hoisted herself up, causing another coughing fit. Her lungs began to burn and ache until they produced blood. Gasping and choking, she swallowed the thick, salty liquid and tried to head for the door.

At that moment, Charles came from around a corner, gun ready. She let out a shrill cry as he tried to shoot at her once more. Before he killed her, Chazz rushed out of the adjacent room, shoving him to the ground. She watched on in shock, then fell to the floor again, too weak from fear and sick.

Charles and Chazz wrestled on the floor, rolling in the bits of severed glass that came from the window. Chazz had obviously jumped through it, but Alexis had been too intent on escape to notice.

Charles kicked Chazz violently in the stomach, trying to immobilize him. Although momentarily stunned, Chazz was resilient enough to retaliate with a sharp blow to the head. Charles staggered back into the dish cabinet. Seeing his chance, Chazz shoved him backwards into the cabinet. Glass and splintered wood scattered everywhere as the cabinet gave way to Charles' weight.

"What have you done to her?" Chazz screamed, glancing over at Alexis and seeing her condition.

"It's your own fault," Charles sneered, "for being so foolish as to let your guard down. It was almost too easy to kill you. At least, I thought I had."

Chazz used the sleeve of his black trench coat to wipe away a bit of blood from his mouth before replying. "You can't keep me down. Especially when so much is at stake. I'll do anything to save her."

Seeing that he'd distracted Chazz, Charles aimed his weapon. Chazz quickly twisted his leg around, flipping him in one swift motion. The bullet missed its target. In the blink of an eye, Chazz had swiped the pistol and aimed it at Charles.

Charles leapt to his feet despite the pistol, and--since Chazz had paused due to the false belief that he had won--flung a chair at him. The chair knocked Chazz over and sent him to the other side of the room. Seeing how there was nothing she could do due to her condition, Alexis shrunk back further into a dark corner, preparing to die.

To everyone's surprise, Chazz struggled to his feet. He staggered across the room, and then with a newfound energy, charged. Charles tried shooting, but his arm was shaking, causing him to miss. Alexis couldn't blame him. The fire burning in Chazz's eyes was more than could ever be extinguished; he simply could not be stopped.

In one last attempt, Charles pointed the pistol at Alexis, swallowing hard. "I-I'll shoot her."

Chazz kept coming, "Maybe a few years ago I would've fallen for that," he told Charles, "but it won't work anymore!"

Unsure of who to aim at, Charles shot blindly. The bullet found its target in Alexis, imbedding itself in her tissue. She cried out in pain, causing Charles to smirk in relief. Now Chazz would have to attend to her.

Alas, it was not to be so. Fate had a different intention for the outcome. Chazz pulled back his fist and punched Charles so hard that Alexis could hear his ribs cracking. She winced at the scene before her as well as the added fiery, stinging pain in her side.

Instead of falling to the floor, Charles pulled the trigger again, leaning against the remains of the dish cabinet. This time, he managed to shoot Chazz.

As soon as Charles saw Chazz drop, he ran. He would not hesitate while his chance was still there. He wouldn't even take the time to finish the job. Surely, by now, neighbors had heard the commotion. They would be on their way shortly.

There was no way that Alexis would let him get away. She began to scream, hoping someone would catch him leaving the scene of the crime. There was no such luck. No one answered her empty cries for help.

With teary, bitter golden eyes, she gazed dismally at Chazz. Slowly, he pushed himself up and looked at her with shamed, defiant eyes.

"I tried," he whispered hoarsely, "I'm sorry."

She sucked her breath in sharply as her body began to throb sharply and painfully. "It's not enough."

"I know, I know. What could we have done, though?"

"Chazz," she said shakily, "Come here."

He slid his body across the floor, over to her corner. His head dropped in her lap, face down. She blushed, but didn't say anything, seeing how he was hurt.

He breathed heavily for a few moments, then lifted his head with great effort, agony piercing his charcoal eyes. "Tell me why."

She only shook her head. "You promised," she whispered.

He continued to stare up at her in regret and anger, his face twisted in pain.

Her expression soon duplicated his. She took a deep breath before continuing, "You promised you wouldn't ever let him hurt me again. But you did. You let me down, just like you did two years ago."

"I couldn't control this--"

"I don't care. You promised me, and I trusted you. I thought I could count on you and your word because you never make a promise you can't deliver. Why'd you give me false hope? Why'd you give me a false sense of security? Why'd you make me love you again? Why didn't you just tell me you couldn't, even if it wouldn't comfort me. Why?"

"I couldn't control it." he said angrily, "I tried. I'm sorry. I never meant for you to get hurt again."

"Get hurt? Hell, you don't know what I've been through." she said, her voice cracking. "He raped me. Violently. And you weren't there."

Silence was her reply.

Feeling more burning anger and resentment rising inside of her, she began to scream at him. "You weren't there! You always let me down. I knew I should never have fallen for you. You never helped me. You only said empty words, told me all the lies my heart desired to hear. You were of no use to me. By letting this happen, by standing back and doing absolutely nothing to win your place back earlier, you, in a way, did this to me. It's your fault for not saving me. You didn't do your job. When I needed help, when I was in danger, you didn't help me. You hurt me. You did this."

"I could do nothing!" he reminded her bitterly. "I tried. I already told you--"

"--What you told me means absolutely nothing as far as I'm concerned. I don't care what you say! Actions speak a thousand times louder than words. And from where I stand, you speak a thousand times more quietly than I'd like a man to. You're not a man. I'm glad I wasn't stuck with you, then. I'd rather be with, with..."

Cutting herself off, she slammed his shoulders against the wall several times, having been abused so often that she knew no other means of communication.

"It never ends," she cried, slamming him to the wall again, despite the pained expression on his face and the soft, contained moans of agony. "First my mother. Then my father. Then my husband. And now my so-called soul mate. You've all abused me! My mother beat me and punished me for nothing. My father was verbally abusive. My husband was both. And you. You're the worst of them all. You're that coward that will only stand back and watch the abuse in silent delight. You take pleasure in others' pain. Well, if I have to die because of your actions, then so do you!"

"Alexis," he gasped, clutching her arms. "Calm down."

He pushed her off with amazing strength, and then sat up, leaning against the wall. She stifled her sobs and gazed at him with pure hatred, that is, until he took her in his arms. She melted against his broken body, crying. She did not want to be comforted by him; however, it happened anyway. Her sobs soon became short little gasps, then she fell silent. She closed her eyes and rested her head on his shoulder. He winced, but didn't tell her to stop.

They curled up, huddled in the corner. Both wondered if they would die. Neither had the strength to get up or come anywhere close to the phone. They could only comfort each other as they stared death in the face, or so it seemed. Their blood mingled as she leaned against his chest, wishing she could take back what she'd said to him. She decided to do the best she could.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean any..." she gasped, "...of that. I was angry. I was upset. If we're gonna die, then at least we'll die together."

He gave a small laugh and smiled weakly. "I can't think of anything I'd like more."

"I love you."

"I love you, too."

She leaned up, taking her hand gently behind his head, buried in his thick, rich ebony hair and pulled him down towards her. He held her more gently and completely, as her mouth brushed his. Even though it hurt, they sat up, kissing softly in the corner, their mixed blood pooling on the floor.

Their emotional pain was gone for the moment. But when Charles returned, they knew they'd be dead for sure. They figured it was the end.

Both sank to the floor, unable to hold themselves up. They lay entwined in one another's arms, staring into each other's eyes. As they kissed again, they slid into unconsciousness.

They feared they'd never wake again.

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Well, that's all for today. See ya next chapter: )


	7. Chapter 7

-1 I'm beginning to feel like I'm nearing the end of this story. Maybe not. I never know. I don't always plan. It's mostly spontaneous. Anyway, I was pretty depressed and tired yesterday. I'm really stressed. But I'll keep writing! (noble) Anyway, here's your well-earned reward for waiting. Thanks for sticking with me thus far!

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Chapter 7

Alexis saw nothing but blackness surrounding her. Ordinarily, she would've been scared. Somehow, though, she felt a strange sense of calm. A warm sensation washed over her, enclosing her, enveloping her, comforting her. She lay still, feeling as though she were floating, suspended in time. She stared up at what she believed was the sky and smiled a little, even though she heard the menacing growls of a monster nearby. It couldn't hurt her anymore.

It couldn't hurt her anymore! Realizing this in its full depth, she grinned wider. Then she laughed. She laughed at it! She didn't care anymore. All was well.

Rolling over, she felt a warm body next to her. She wasn't scared or surprised at this. She cupped the thin cheeks in her hands and, brushing a black spike away, kissed his nose. She smirked up at the unseen creature, mocking it, daring it to hurt her anymore.

It couldn't. Figuring that there was nothing it could do, the beast's growls became more and more distant until they faded into complete silence. The silence was welcome.

Suddenly, the dark began to lift, giving way to foggy gray. Soon, a bright, blinding light penetrated her eyelids, causing her head to pound.

She cracked open her golden eyes and looked around in confusion. Where had the darkness gone? And where was Chazz?

Sitting up, the throbbing in her side reminded her of what had happened. Grimly, she looked about the hospital room. In panic, she realized that Charles must've changed his mind. What if he was there? And what if Chazz hadn't made it? What if he were dead?

Calming down, she told herself that Charles wasn't there and that he wasn't the one to find them. Maybe a neighbor had. She hoped this was the case.

After several minutes had ticked away, the door clicked and opened. She jumped in surprise and dread. It was only a nurse.

"Um, excuse me, miss." Alexis said softly.

The nurse stared at her in shock. "You're not supposed to be awake yet!"

"It doesn't matter." Alexis said bitterly, "Anyway, who brought me here?"

"We received a 911 call from a neighbor. Our personnel brought you to the emergency room."

"What about Chazz Princeton? Is he..."

The nurse sighed heavily in exasperation. "Chazz Princeton is fine. He had only minor injuries, just as yourself."

"But you said I shouldn't be awake--"

"From the anesthesia. We had to operate to remove the bullet out of your side. Thankfully, there were no complications and no injury to the internal organs. You and Mr. Princeton only passed out from loss of blood and shock. You will both be released by tomorrow."

"Tomorrow? Don't you think that's a bit soon?"

The nurse frowned. "We believe you'll be all right. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a job to do." She exited the room.

Alexis sighed. This was not going to be a pleasant stay. At least Chazz was fine, but he might not be if Charles returned. Speaking of which, what was she to do if he did? She needed a plan of action.

Unfortunately, she was unable to conjure a plan up for the entire time she was trapped in the hospital. She had no clue where to go from there. She had nowhere to go.

About an hour and a half from her release, Chazz stepped into her room, fully dressed. It was obvious that he had just been released.

He sat on a nearby chair and looked down at her. "How are you feeling?"

"Like hell. And you?"

"Ok, I guess. Look, I wanna talk to you about what we're gonna do."

"Oh, good. I don't have a plan."

"We need to get as far away from that creep as possible. So, before they discharge you, I'll go pick your stuff up from your house, and some stuff from mine, then I'll come back here to pick you up. We'll leave this town and figure out what we're gonna do from there."

She stared at him. "I thought we weren't running away anymore."

He looked annoyed. "We're not running away. We're just biding our time. Until we can come up with a way to get rid of him for good, that is."

"You're not gonna kill him, are you?" she asked suspiciously.

"Only if I absolutely have to," he replied.

She frowned. "You don't need to be in any more trouble. And, yes, you are too running away. You always run away from your problems."

"Like when?"

"Remember when the Chancellor demoted you to Ra when you lost to Bastion? What'd you do? You ran away and went to North Academy so you could be the best. You have too much pride. And you're a coward. You won't face your problems, you try to start over somewhere else. Ok, if that wasn't enough, example number two. When Charles and my father confronted you, what'd you do? You bailed and ran away because you feared for your reputation. I'm sick of it. I won't run."

He glowered at her. "Yeah, I made some mistakes, but then again, who doesn't? Besides, do we really have a choice here? We're at a complete impasse. There's no way out. There's nowhere to turn."

"Have you got that damn lawyer yet or not? If you haven't, then you're not really trying. You're giving up. You haven't changed."

"Shut up!" he snapped, "I have too. I'm trying. I'll do anything for you. Now, why the hell are you picking on me like that when I'm your ticket out of this mess?"

"You're what got me into this mess in the first place!"

"How so?"  
"By not doing you're job, that's how!"

"Alexis, I can't do anything. You can't always be so bold. You can't always rush in."

"You had no problem doing that before. That is, until your ass is in trouble. Then you run away like a spoiled brat rich kid."

"Would you shut up, already?!" he snapped. "I'm sick of hearing this from everyone."

"Because it's the truth," she scoffed, "You can't help me. Why should I trust you? You've only hurt me. You broke my heart and dashed my hopes. You don't love me. You're no different from the others."

"What--I--you can't--aaaaaargh"

"You're a terrible provider. Not to mention you suck at protecting me. You can't protect me. You only said you could to make yourself look good. You're so selfish--"

"Shut up!" he snapped, interrupting her and slamming his fist on the nightstand.

She shrank back, seeing his angry expression. "Please, don't hurt me."

His expression softened. "Have I ever hurt you physically?"

She hesitated, then shook her head. "No."

"Do you honestly think I would?"

Silence.

"Alexis? ... Come on. We've known each other since duel prep school. You know I'd never hit a lady."

"I don't trust you." she whispered, gazing down at her hands in her lap.

"What changed? Why not?"

Tears welled up in her eyes as she spoke. "I can't trust you because," she took a deep, shaky breath, "because everyone I ever trusted or loved hurt me. You'll hurt me. You have and you will again."

"I didn't mean to hurt you. And I won't hurt you physically."

She looked up at him with helpless eyes. "You yelled at me."

"But I did before..."

"You can't do that. You say you're different. But the others yelled at me. I can sense the resentment you harbor against me. No, I can't trust you. One day that anger will have welled up so much, you'll snap and lash out at me."

"But, even when I was furious with you I never hit you. I only yelled at you a little bit. And you screamed back. It was only during our arguments."

She bit her lip, looking down again. She didn't respond.

"Come on, please trust me. You can't make it on your own. I can't explain or justify my past actions, but I can try to make a good future for you. I'll try my best, just please trust me. You can't live your life without an ally."

Still hanging her head, she squeezed her eyes shut, then breathed deeply. "Ok. I'll give you another chance."

"Will you trust me?"

"I'll try."

"Good. I won't let you down. I promise, baby." he kissed her on the side of the head.

She winced. Deep inside, she feared him. Not because he'd mistreated her, only because that was the only way she knew. Everyone had always hurt her. Could she really believe that he would care for her? It didn't matter what had happened in their past. He could've changed. Whereas he'd once been a lovesick puppy, now he could be aggressive and abusive. How was she to know? A person could change a lot in two years. She knew she had.

"Alexis?" he said, shaking her from her thoughts, "I'd better go if I want to come back in time."

She gazed up into his face. "Ok."

"I'll be back, I promise. Then we can leave." He began to walk out.

"Where are we going?"

He stopped, then turned around. "To a lawyer."

She was surprised. "I thought we were gonna leave town."

"Not this time. I've changed my mind. The best thing to do is what we failed to do so many years ago. We'll get the law involved. And if you file a complaint against Charles for abusing you, then the law will look into the rest of our suspicions. We'll find a way to expose him. I won't let you down this time. I know I said this before, but this time, we'll carry it out. And if he dares to show his face right after that incident, then I'll kill him."

"Literally?"

He pulled back his jacket to reveal a handgun. "Oh, yeah. You're my top priority. You always have been, always will be. I will kill him. I'll hunt him down like an animal if I have to. If he hurts you one more time, no more holding back. I'll shoot him."

She sat still, unable to say a word. Finally, she nodded. "Do what you must."

"I'll come back in an hour."

She watched him walk out, worrying he'd have a run in with Charles. If he did, there was no telling what would happen. But one thing was certain, he would be back. She trusted his word this time.

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Chapter 7 was a bit quiet, don't you think? More or less exploring their emotions and interactions. Next time, we'll see what happens when they try to carry out their escape plan! This is gonna get ugly...


	8. Chapter 8

-1 Hi, again! It's been a couple of days, but be warned, this is no wait compared to what hell of suspense I might put you through for the next few weeks. You see, I'm going to Florida for about 8-10 days, so I might not be able to update. The Internet service at the golf villas sucks. Also, I might have to wait longer because I'll have to stay after school to make everything up. Add in senior exit, quarter exams, SATs, college applications, potential illness, and potential recovery due to going over on absences and it might be a long, long, LONG time. But I'll try. Keep checking, 'cause you never know: )

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Chapter 8

Chazz and Alexis sat together in the lawyer's office, fidgeting nervously. They had done it. They'd filed the complaint. Now, all they had to do was sit back and wait.

Well, not really sit back and wait. They were too nervous to keep still. They glanced at each other, apprehension filling their eyes. Both knew but were too afraid to say. Charles and Mr. Rhodes would know. They'd come after them one day or another, that was certain.

Finally, Chazz cleared his throat. "Um, Alexis?"

"Yes?" she said softly, suddenly fascinated with the fabric of her skirt.

"What'll we do if this doesn't work?"

"It will."  
Silence.

"Um, Alexis?"

"Yes?"

"Are you gonna file for divorce?"

Alexis said nothing for a moment. Finally, she sighed. "I guess I might as well." Here, she gave a twisted, sad laugh. "Not like I could annul the marriage, anyway. For one thing, we've been married too long. For another thing..." here, she paused for a long time,"...I...I'm not a virgin anymore."

There was a long silence. Both stared down in sudden interest at the floor. Finally, Chazz spoke.

"I think you're still a virgin."

"That's ridiculous." she said, shifting her position in the now uncomfortable chair. "He got me. I'm not a virgin."

"You are to me. You never authorized it. You were raped."

"But that still counts."

"Alexis, there's a difference between sex and making love. Sex could be animalistic. It could be rape. It could be indifferent. It's just something that all life forms do regardless of emotions or higher intelligence. Making love, however, involves deep emotion and spiritual connection--you gotta love the person, duh."

"But, you can have sex and lose your virginity," she argued, "It doesn't matter. Sex is sex."

"I never said that, now, did I? Rape is an entirely different story. You don't mean it or mean for it at all. He may have had sex with you, but you didn't have sex with him. It's kinda like your first kiss. It's not your first _real_ kiss until you kiss the person back, get it?"

"Ok, ok, whatever." She sighed heavily and leaned against his shoulder. "I wish he'd hurry up."

"Nervous?"

"Am I ever." She snuggled closer.

At that moment, the lawyer stepped out of the record room. "I don't know about this. Are you sure you want to take on Mr. Grayton? I mean, he's quite the figure here and he has many supporters. Not to mention an entire team of lawyers."

"Listen, slacker, I want you to take on that case and win, got it?" Chazz snapped, standing up.

"I can't guarantee it." the lawyer told him, looking peeved. "He's wealthy, and semi-famous. At least in this town, anyway."

"Do you even know who you're talking to?" Chazz growled, "Come on, get real. My family makes so much more money, remember? So, tell ya what, if you win, then you'll get a bonus added on to your regular charge, got that?"

The lawyer frowned. "How much?"  
"A hundred."

"That's not--"

"A hundred thousand, I mean."

"Ok, you've got yourself a deal."

Alexis shook her head. The occupation of lawyer truly was bottom of the barrel.

They stayed a bit longer to fill out divorce papers, and hoped the proceedings would go quickly. It wasn't likely, though, with him being so popular. Alexis really was afraid that this divorce would ruin her financially and emotionally, but then again, so had this marriage. She had nothing more to lose.

For several days, all was calm. She stayed at Chazz's mansion, and Charles didn't show his wretched face. However, after a week, the calm began to get eerie.

Alexis knew she was being watched. She got that same prickling feeling down the back of her neck as she had two years ago. Charles was watching her.

Sometimes, she thought she saw a shadow dart through the back of the yard, or there would be a blurred movement in the window. She could honestly say she was scared out of her mind.

That was when things began to disappear. Nothing important, mind you, but it was still creepy. First, it was a cheap bracelet of hers. Next, some towels vanished. Then, it was some twine.

That was the end of the theft of harmless items. But the disappearances didn't stop there.

She soon discovered a kitchen knife set missing. Then, someone swiped the rifles which Chazz had been storing in the broom closet.

And then, a perplexing theft--someone took all the aerosol cans under the sink. All the chemical were gone, even the detergents. Alexis began to wonder if Charles were planning something. She got the answer two days later.

Someone rang the doorbell. Although Alexis knew she shouldn't, she went to the door anyway. She shrieked at what she saw.

There, sprawled out in plain daylight on her doorstep, was a man's body. The corpse was wrapped tightly in the blood-stained towels. Twine was tied all around his limbs, which had been severed off with a butcher knife from the kitchen set, which presently resided in the man's temple. He had been shot so many times, his skin looked like Swiss cheese. Around his wrist hung her bracelet, with a note attached.

"You're next."

Alexis slammed the door, breathing hard, completely and utterly stunned. Quickly, she crumpled the note in her hand, and bounded up the stairs, two by two, then three by three, to Chazz's office.

She busted in his door and leapt on his lap, shivering. He stopped typing and slid his arms around her thin waist, trying to console her.

"What's the matter, baby?"

Swallowing hard and trying to regain her composure, she replied, "Only what I've been fearing every single day and night for countless weeks. Look."

With trembling hands, she unfurled the crumbled note and held it up for him to read. After a moment, he took the note from her, and stared at it more closely. He gave a small laugh.

"You _laugh_?" she gasped in horror, "My life is threatened and you _laugh_?"

"No, it's not that. It's just, who would be so stupid as to leave this kind of evidence? This note is evidence enough that your life has been threatened and your claims are true. For a criminal mastermind, he sure is dumb. I mean, how long has he been doin' this, years? Well, I guess ya gotta screw up sometime."

"Chazz, can you take it more seriously than that?" she asked, tears in her eyes, "You're such an insensitive jerk! What, do you want me to die?"

"No, no, that's not what I meant. I..."

She suddenly realized he didn't know about the body. Saying nothing, she took him by the hand and led him downstairs. He followed without protest or question.

She took a deep breath to calm her nerves, flung the door open, then slipped behind him in case something else, namely Charles, was awaiting them.

He could only gawk down at the corpse. Alexis squeezed his shoulder, and he put his hand over hers.

He took a deep breath, then said shakily, "Call 911."

"Um..."

"Now! Do it now!"

She ran into the adjoining room and snatched up the phone. Hastily, she punched in the digits; however, when she raised the phone to listen, there was deathly silence. She traced the cord to the wall and saw that it had been cut. She whipped out her cell phone to try again.

A cold, bony hand gripped her shoulder like a vice. "What do you think you're doing, Alexis?" came a stern, bored voice.

She shivered, then opened her mouth to yell for Chazz.

"Don't bother. He'll be dead by the time you call for him. I set a poison bomb out there. And it's set to go off in ten seconds."

"Oh, f" was the only thought that ran through her mind. She screamed anyway, knowing that they were going to die.

"Chazz, get out!!!!!!!!!!!!" she screamed, fighting Charles' hands away to do so.

Before she could scream again or try to get away, there was a deafening explosion from outside. Wood, glass, and other debris came fling inward, blowing Charles and Alexis to the floor.

"Oh, sht, I just got outta the hospital!" she thought, "And what about Chazz? Did he make it? Maybe Charles died at least..."

After the dust and smoke cleared, she shoved the debris off of her thin body and, aching, stood up.

"Oh, sht," she thought again, "Poison bomb. Dammit, I already inhaled."

Quickly, she used her jacket to cover her mouth, not like it would do her much good. Her eyes burned and stung as she stepped over the rubble, and over to the door.

She looked to the right, then to the left, then again to the right. Nothing was recognizable. She didn't see any sign of Chazz either.

In panic, she wondered it he'd been completely burned up. Despite herself, she began to hyperventilate. Tears streamed heavily down her face. She would not let herself drop to her knees.

Flames burned into the foyer as the fire began to spread. She paid no heed to the imminent danger. She didn't care. She was blinded, focuses on one thought--Chazz. She felt faint, weak, dizzy, still she would not let herself fall down.

Her legs felt like rubber and her head spun from the fumes. She knew she had to escape, but she wasn't willing to leave without Chazz. If he had to die, then she would go down to hell with him.

Turning back around, she saw that Charles was gone. Her murderer had escaped. Turning back around, she searched desperately for any sign of Chazz. There was none.

She began to tear through the adjacent rooms, as well as look through the shattered windows. Through her jacket, she began to scream the muffled, distressed cries of his name. There was no response.

As the house became engulfed in flames, she alone stood in the middle of the foyer. She stood there, as ashes and burning wood fell around her, embers tearing and searing her skin. She would not leave.

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Thought it was getting quiet, didn't you? Well, you got too complacent and now look what had to happen to wake you up. I'm kidding. I know you weren't asleep. Anyway, that is so not the end, so you'll have to keep reading. And just to build up more suspense:

Next time, will Alexis live? Will this be the last chapter? And if it is, is it her funeral? Is Chazz really dead? Did Charles get away and hurt another helpless girl? Will his killing spree continue? And just who was that dead guy?...All your questions and more answered next time.


	9. Chapter 9

-1 Hi, again. All my loyal readers, sniffle, I'm afraid it'll be awhile before I can update after this chap. I have to go to Florida and then catch up on school when I get back, so it might be awhile before I can write. But if I can write down there, I will. Don't worry, I will write again, because I need to write to live. I love it too much XD.

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Chapter 9

Alexis dug through the rubble of the house, still looking for Chazz. She began to think he was dead. Just as she was about to give up hope, she heard someone yelling from outside.

"ALEXIS!!!!"

Feebly, she staggered over to the window and peered through the grimy, soot covered panes. Coming towards the burning house was a figure, clad in black. Could it be?

Chazz kicked open the window, reached in, and pulled her out with strong arms. He carried her away from the house just as it fell in on itself. She let her legs dangle over his arms and clung to his neck weakly.

"Chazz...I was so worried you were dead." she told him, nuzzling his neck, "I wasn't gonna leave without you."

"Alexis, don't ever do that again! I was so scared for you. I thought you were dead!" He squeezed her body tightly in his arms. "Oh, Lex, I love you."

She squeezed him back, and whispered hoarsely, "I love you, too. That's why I couldn't leave. If you were going to die, then so would I. I can't live without you."

They clung to each other, the flames still burning red hot and licking orange against the sky. Sirens echoed in the distance, signaling that help was on its way.

"Oh, Chazz, you lost everything, didn't you?" she asked, looking sadly up at him.

"No, I didn't. I have you. Besides, not all my stuff was in there. I have another mansion, remember? And I'm filthy rich. Even if I wasn't, I wouldn't care. As long as you're Ok. But I'm not sure you are. You'll have to be treated for smoke inhalation."

"But, I'm fine." she protested.

"No, you're not. Not only did you breathe in smoke, but you also breathed in poison. You have to see a doctor."

As he spoke, she could already feel the effects. She felt dizzy, hot, and drowsy.

"Alexis, thanks for yelling that. If it weren't for you..."

She nodded, a weak smile curving her lips. "You're welcome," she breathed.

"Lex? You gonna be Ok? Lex, hang in there, Ok?"

She nodded, her head dropping on his sturdy shoulder. Her fingers dug into his collarbone as she felt her eyes begin to droop closed.

"Don't let me die."

"I won't, Ok? Don't you worry, I'll make sure nothing ever happens to you."

She drifted out of consciousness, her body growing limp in his arms.

"No, please, don't die! ...Alexis..."

The fire trucks finally pulled up. A paramedic arrived, and took Chazz and Alexis back to the hospital. Chazz began to think that this was a rather uncomfortable, and repetitive, routine.

He was much relieved to find that she was all right. They treated her for minor burns, smoke inhalation, and toxic fume inhalation. Soon, she was awake again.

"We sure dodged that bullet." Chazz sighed, relieved.

"I don't know how much more I can take." Alexis told him, hugging her knees to her chest.

"We won't take any more." he informed her. "I'm done with this bastard. I'm not even kidding. He only did this because he was certain we'd die. But we didn't, so now we can prosecute him for sure. There's no time to waste. Now, since you're ok, I'm gonna call the cops. There's no way he'll wriggle his way out of this one."

She didn't believe it would work; they had tried so many times. Nevertheless, it was worth one more shot.

They didn't need to call the police, though. The police came to them. They inquired if Chazz or Alexis had any idea who had done it. They ended up telling the entire story.

Alexis feared that the police would scoff at them, but they didn't. They believed the story. It turned out that the law had suspected Charles was a criminal for a long time; however, they were unable to find enough evidence to convict him. This time, though, Charles had accidentally left behind his knife, which had his initials carved into it. He'd been in such a hurry to escape the fire, he'd forgotten it. And even through the hot flames, it had somehow survived. It wasn't in the best shape, but it was enough.

Not to mention he'd accidentally cut himself in the struggle with his lawyer, who'd been the man lying dead on the doorstep. Apparently, his lawyer had stumbled upon 'classified' information. So Charles had murdered him.

The police sent out units immediately to find Charles, in order to arrest him. This left Chazz and Alexis alone again, relieved, yet unsure of what to do.

A slight tension filled the room, a certain uneasiness. Something wasn't right. Alexis could sense the presence of a third party.

Suddenly, the closet door flew open. Chazz instinctively jumped in front of Alexis, just as Charles came out of the closet.

There was an eerie silence as Charles ambushed them. He raised a seven inch dagger above Chazz, ready to strike. Chazz had hardly any time to react. He shoved Alexis out of the way as the dagger slit the mattress open.

Chazz rolled over on top of Alexis, in an attempt to protect her. She stiffened, fear opening her amber eyes wide. Not only was Charles scaring her, but so was Chazz. She flashbacked to the day that Charles had raped her. Once more, she began to hyperventilate.

"Get off!" she cried in a trembling voice.

"Alexis, I'm trying to protect you!"

"Chazz, get off!"

He didn't have a chance to respond. Charles was coming towards them at top speed. Chazz reached up a hand and seized Charles' wrist, struggling to prevent the fatal blow.

Alexis bit her lip, now angry. She was not going to let Charles get away with this. She'd help too. After all, she wasn't completely dependant on others. And Chazz desperately needed her help.

Shaking, she snatched a nearby lamp and, being careful so to not strike Chazz, she bashed it on Charles' head.

Crimson blood tricked down his face, pooling at his chin. He turned towards the girl, anger flashing in his cold eyes.

He said nothing, only grasped her around the throat, his fingers digging in like eagles' talons. She tried to tear his hands away, but his grasp only grew tighter. Chazz could only prevent Charles' from stabbing them to death and look helplessly on.

Alexis tried to yell, but all that came out was a dry rasp. Chazz, seeing what she was attempting, tried to call for help himself, only to be kneed violently in the ribs.

Charles smirked as Chazz coughed, unable to utter any noise. Alexis kept trying to wrest her freedom, but found the task impossible.

"I may have to go to jail," Charles seethed through his teeth, "but at least I'll have the pleasure of knowing you're dead! You adulterer! You whore!"

Chazz, regaining his strength hearing this, pressed harder against Charles' wrist. He opened his mouth to scream again. Charles kneed him repeatedly in the ribs, preventing him from speaking. However, Charles could not prevent him from fighting.

Desperation filling her soul, Alexis balled her fist up and punched Charles, giving him a black eye. In response, Charles jerked the knife away from Chazz's direction with an incredible burst of energy. The knife cut through the air, in a straight line for her heart.

Chazz leapt up, seizing the blade. Blood dribbled down his hand and his wrist. Agony twisted his face, but he didn't let go. Charles twisted the knife his Chazz's hand, stabbing at it, but no matter how much pain he put the youngest Princeton through, he just wouldn't let go. Once more, he tried to scream.

Charles hushed Chazz by piercing the blade through his wrist. Chazz winced, and gasped in pain. Alexis couldn't watch any more.

Anger and resentment fueling her, she bit his arm. She bit as hard as she could, drawing blood to the surface of his filthy skin. She sank her teeth deeper and deeper into his flesh, until she hit bone. Charles let out a scream and tried to yank his arm away.

Alexis held on with all her might. Even when he released her throat and beat her on the side of the head until she felt dizzy, she held on. She clenched her teeth harder, biting deeper into the bone.

His bloodcurdling, otherworldly screams filled the room, causing an eerie echo. She dug deeper. Chazz, still gasping and sweating from his wound, pulled out his own pocketknife. Still bleeding and pale, he raised it above Charles. The blow was fatal.

Charles' eyes rolled back as he uttered one last impish cry, then he fell, bloody, to the floor. Red gushed up, spreading darkly and staining the linen of his shirt. He lay still.

Chazz dropped to his knees, gasping, holding his wrist as it gushed. "Alexis...I'm gonna die..."

"No, you're not," she told him, spitting into a tissue.

"But, I--"

"Shhh. I'll get a nurse..."

She didn't have to. The nurse had heard Charles' screams. She rushed in the room and gawked at the bloody mess on the floor. She looked from Charles, to Alexis-- who still had bloody, aching teeth--to Chazz--who, by then was hunched over on the floor, blood still pouring from the wound.

"Oh, dear! What happened?" she asked as she tended to Chazz.

Alexis, feeling sick to her stomach, related the story. Her stomach felt sour from Charles' tainted blood. She excused herself to the bathroom.

She threw up off and on for several hours, then lay on the tile, stunned. Could Charles really be dead? She cleaned herself up, then went down to the emergency room to see about Chazz.

He was lying on a table, still pale, but color was beginning to return to his cheeks. He smiled weakly at Alexis.

"Are you going to be ok?"

"Yeah," he muttered, slowly lifting his trembling hand.

She inspected the stitches in his wrist.

"I had to get thirty-five on the outside," he told her, "and hell knows how many on the inside. It sure hurt."

"I bet so." she leaned down and kissed his forehead, his face cool against her warm lips.

She sat by his side, stroking his hair, until he finished receiving a blood transfusion.

Finally, they moved the exhausted couple to a room. Alexis laid her head on Chazz's bed, sitting by his side in a chair.

"I'll stay with you tonight."  
"You don't have to."  
"Yes, I do. You might need me. Besides, I'm too badly shaken from today."

"Ok." he agreed, too tired to argue.

"Are you going to be in trouble for killing Charles?"

"No. The law understands. I mean, he was only trying to kill both of us. And he almost succeeded so many times. He's already committed murder, rape, embezzlement, fraud, robbery, and countless other crimes. I'm not in trouble. He would've received the death penalty anyway."

She sighed in relied and kissed his lips. "Good. And the charges against you?"

"Dropped. They investigated it. I mean, Charles delivered his little speech like he'd threatened, but after everything they'd suspected him of doing, they didn't believe it. Plus my lawyer stood up for me. And, you're free of Charles!"  
"That's great! I'm so glad that you won't be in trouble, and now we can be together."

"There's one problem left."

"What?"

"Your father."

There was a long silence.

"Even if there's no more blackmail, he'll still do everything in his power to keep us apart."

"Well, there's no hurt in trying, right?" she asked, smiling a little.

"No, I guess not." he said reluctantly.

She leaned down, kissing his mouth again, then rested her head on his chest. The steady beating of his heart lulled her to sleep, the first real sleep she'd had in months. The nightmares were gone.

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Ok, well, there's at least one more chap. It's not over yet! I know it sounds like the end but they have one more obstacle to overcome. Will her father keep them apart, or will he have a change of heart?


	10. Chapter 10

Yay, I'm finally updating! I've been busy with school and church and my other CxA fics, as well as my CxA C2, but now I can finally update again! Truth be told, I'm not really sure how this chap will go. I don't know how it will end or if this will be the last chap. I'll let you know at the end of this chap : )

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Chapter 10:

Alexis stood outside her parents' home, shaking. She took a deep breath before she rang the doorbell, biting back the horrible urge to run while she could. She had to do this. She had to confront her father on what he had done.

After several deep breaths, she finally rang the doorbell. Cringing, she waited for someone to open it. Nobody did. She was confused. Their cars were parked in the driveway. They had to be home.

She rapped on the door, and peered in the frosted glass. She couldn't see anything. A feeling of sick dread rose from the pit of her stomach. She banged on the door again and again, feeling all the sicker. She pounded frantically on the door. No response.

With trembling hands, she pulled out her cell phone and dialed her parents' home number. After calling several times with no response, she tried calling their cell phones. It was to no avail.

Desperate, she called the neighbors. Nobody had heard from her parents. She became more apprehensive.

Finally, she called Atticus.

"Hello?"

"Atticus!" she gasped, panicked, "Have you heard from mom or dad?"

"No."

"Do you know where they are?"

"Well, two nights ago they said they'd be home for the next couple of days. They had the flu….I was gonna check up on them today, but…."

"Atticus," she said, swallowing hard, "I can't get them to come to the door. I've got a really bad feeling about this. Something's wrong."

"Well, then, go get the spare key from under the steps."

She reached under the steps and felt around the cold concrete. Frowning, she peered under.

"It's gone."

"Hmm, I don't know how that could've happened. Maybe they removed it…"

"Atticus," she said shakily, "can't you just accept that something's wrong? We have to find out what happened to mom and dad."

"I'm sure they're fine."

"Atticus, I'm worried about them. Do something!"  
"What do you want me to do, call the cops?"

"Maybe you should…."

"Ok, ok, Lex, I'm coming down there, 'k? Just hang on. Wait for me; don't call the police yet, 'k?"

"Ok." She reluctantly agreed.

"Ok, see ya in a few."

"Bye." She shut her phone then re-opened it and dialed Chazz's number.

"Hello?"

"Chazz? Hey, it's Alexis. Look, I'm sorry to call you when you're still recovering from that wound and all, and I know you're tired, but….I'm worried about my parents."

"What's wrong?"

"Well, the thing is, I can't get them to come to the door or pick up the phone. The neighbors haven't heard from them. Neither has Atticus. Last he talked to them, which was two days ago, they had the flu. I can't find the spare key to get into the house. Well, now, I don't know if they're really sick or hurt or……" she trailed off.

"It's Ok, Lex, stay calm. I'll come down there."

"But, my dad hates you!" she blurted.

"I know. But I gotta be there for you. It doesn't matter what the hell your dad thinks. All that matters is that you're Ok."

"Aww, Chazz…..but, wait, you're still weak."

"I'll be fine. I'll do anything for you. Now, I'll be down there as soon as I can, Ok?"

"Ok, but be careful."

"I will, I promise. I'll call you if something happens."

"Ok."

"I love you, Ok? Talk to ya later."

"Bye, I love you, too."

She hung up and sat on the steps, miserable. She toyed with her cell phone, thinking about what Atticus had said. Wait. Atticus had told her that he'd last heard from them two days earlier. The spare key was now missing. Just two days ago, Chazz had killed Charles.

Suddenly, she leapt to her feet and ran around the side of the house. She looked about frantically for anything she could get her hands on. Finding a large rock, she picked it up and smashed the window with it. She had to slam it into the window several times before the glass finally cracked and gave way.

Without thinking, she jumped through the broken glass. A shard sliced across her skin, drawing blood. She winced but paid it little attention.

It took a moment for her eyes to adjust to the darkness of the room. She looked up at the mantle which displayed pictures of her and Atticus as children. Nervously, she ascended the stairs, noting the eerie silence that had settled like an omen of death.

"Hello?" she dared to call.

Hearing her voice briefly echo through the empty rooms sent chills up and down her spine. She flipped her phone open again, and made her way stealthily into her parents' bedroom.

At first, she saw nothing because of the blackout curtains. Then, once her eyes adjusted again, she saw two unmoving lumps in bed. The room smelled sour and musty, like spoiled milk, mothballs, and road kill.

Her stomach churned. She dared not look at the bed any longer. Quickly, she averted her eyes and darted from the room.

Sinking to the floor in the hall, she began to sob very quietly. How could she have let them die like this? It had to be her fault. Charles had been a threat, she knew he was dangerous. Yet, she had been so angry with her father, so selfish, so bent on revenge that she had failed to notify him about Charles' threats and actions. Now, because she hadn't warned them or told them what had happened to her, they were dead.

Her fingers shook as she dialed Chazz's number. She angrily wiped away a few tears that had strayed down her nose and sniffed.

"Hey, babe, I'm almost there." Chazz answered.

"Chazz," she gulped, "don't come."

"Why?"

"Don't." She stifled a sob. She didn't want him to see this

But Chazz knew that this was her way of saying that she needed him immediately. He knew something was wrong.

"Alexis, baby, I'm pulling in the driveway…"

"No, don't!" she sobbed, "Please leave."

"I can't. Where are you?"

"Nowhere."

"Princess, tell me where you are."

"I-I-" she finally relented, "I'm inside."

"How'd you get in?"

"I broke a window."

Painful throbbing in her arm then reminded her of the cut. She then slapped her hand over it to stop the bleeding.

"I found it. I'm coming in."

"No….stop…."

It was too late. She heard footsteps downstairs. She squeezed her eyes shut and huddled shaking against the wall, grief-stricken and guilt-ridden.

"Lex?"

She felt strong arms go around her. She nestled against his chest, her face buried in the crook of his neck.

"Chazz," she whimpered, hot tears forming in her eyes, "we're too late…."

"What do you mean?"

She took in a sharp, painful, involuntary breath. "Charles…he…he…killed them…He killed my parents."

Chazz tightened his grip around her and the shock settled in. "How did that bastard…."

"I don't know." She gasped, then swallowed hard. "But it's too late. And it's all my fault. I was so intent on getting back at my dad that I didn't tell him about what happened to me. I should've told him. He could've stopped Charles and stayed alive. If it weren't for me then he'd still be alive. Oh, Chazz!"

She flung her arms around his neck, and ran her fingers up in his silky raven hair. She gave deep, shaking sobs until she couldn't breathe anymore. He held her tightly, his chin on her head, rocking her back and forth.

"If…only…I had never been born," she gasped, "If only…I'd….If only….If only…."

He didn't say anything only pressed her shaking body closer to his and held her tighter. He held her so tightly that she thought she wouldn't be able to breathe. Yet, she could, as was obvious from her sharp intakes of air.

Her chest began to hurt from sharp pangs brought upon by the sobbing and her heartache. She couldn't breathe anymore. It didn't matter how tightly Chazz held her now, as long as her eased her suffering.

"Ch…azz…" she moaned, "If only…If only…I'd….I could've…this wouldn't have…."

Seeing her language was becoming incompetent, he shushed her by pressing her head deeply into his neck. She cried on his neck, tears running down and drenching the collar of his shirt. She certainly couldn't breathe now. It didn't matter to her anymore.

"I…should…die…for…my…sin…" she gasped, her voice muffled by his neck, "I killed…them."

"No, you didn't, Alexis. Stop blaming yourself. It was Charles, not you. It's not your fault. There was nothing you could do. After all, you were too busy avoiding death yourself."

"It'd have been better if I had died instead." She whimpered, sliding onto his lap and not caring that she was sitting on him in a semi-dirty manner.

He didn't pay it any attention for the time being. His only concern was for her emotional well-being. He cupped her chin gently in his hands and pulled her wet face out of his neck. Looking her right in her tortured eyes, he took his thumb and wiped away all her tears.

Her sobs began to finally subside. She stared at him with despair.

"Alexis," Chazz said quietly, "It's not your fault. It's Ok. God will take care of them now."

She nodded, pained.

"It hurts to let a loved one go," Chazz told her, "but you have to. It was their time. And you'll see them one day. I promise."

"How do you know for sure?" she asked skeptically, "Have you ever died?"

"No, but I know that there has to be more to our existence than this life. I mean, life sucks. Of course there has to be some reason to go through all this torment. One day we're going to be happy. And you'll see everyone you love and miss."

"You never were religious…" she began, puzzled.

"You don't have to be religious to know that there's more to life than this existence."

Feeling comforted by his words, she pulled away from him and stood up. "Thank-you, Chazz."

He only smiled bittersweetly.

"Come on, I have to show you something." She took his hand and led him back into the bedroom.

He was confused, then understood. They pulled the sheets over her parents, then called 911.

As they watched the ambulance carry her parents away, Alexis and Chazz stood with one arm around the other. They turned towards each other and hugged, then kissed.

Atticus arrived, then, seeing from his car that Chazz and Alexis were engaged in a private moment, and seeing the ambulance driving away, chose to leave for the hospital.

Alexis kissed Chazz harder, seeing Atticus leave, and ran her fingers through the back of his hair. He pulled his mouth from hers and stared her directly in her honey colored eyes.

"Just remember, Lex," he told her, "every ending is a new beginning."

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Aww, sadness T.T Poor Alexis. Bad, Charles, bad! Don't worry, I decided there will be another chapter. Of course, that one might be the last. Who knows?


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: We have finally arrived at the LAST chapter, the conclusion to this story. I decided to upload two alternate ending in the next "chapter," but keep in mind that this is the actual ending and this is actually the end...**

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Chapter 11:

Alexis looked up lazily from her book over at Chazz. He, as well, looked up from his book. The two smiled at each other. After a moment, he took her hand, lacing his fingers with hers. He gently toyed with her wedding band, his smile growing bigger.

"You're finally mine."

"I always was yours." She said softly, "I never left you."

"Well, ya could've fooled me."

"Well, now, nothing can keep us apart and nothing can tear us apart." She leaned over and touched her lips to his.

He held her lips in the kiss for a moment, then: "I'm surprised that you're not more devastated than you are."

"That's because I have you to take care of me. Well, to a certain degree. Because I can fare for myself…somewhat."

"Not as much as you'd like to think."

"Don't go there with me, Chazz." She gently teased.

"I will if I want to," he smirked.

"You don't have complete say over me."

"I will if I want to," he said again.

"You were always that way, weren't you?"  
He shrugged. "Alexis?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you think you'll ever trust me completely? I mean, after what Charles did?"

She sighed, her expression growing serious. "Chazz, before this whole incident, I didn't trust you entirely. Now that I've seen what true disrespect and disregard for a human being is, I can't hold anything you've done in the past against you. You could say that, because of Charles, I trust you more. As of now, I trust you completely. But please, don't take advantage of my trust. You can always blow someone's trust, but you can't always get it back."

"Too true," he mused, "Look at my brothers. Now that they see how successful I am as a duelist, as a CEO of the Princeton Corporation, and as a man, they've apologized. But that can't make up for the abuse I had to suffer for years."

"Why did your parents never intervene?" Alexis asked curiously.

"Because…at first they didn't know. Then, when they found out, they couldn't do anything about it. They tried, but they were too busy to make sure Slade and Jagger were properly disciplined. Then, of course, my brothers became adults and could treat me however they pleased."

"You can't treat anyone however you please," she commented, "it's inhumane. There are laws against that."

"Yeah, but there are certain relationships you don't want to complicate, as you're well aware."

"It's only thanks to you that I escaped." She told him, squeezing his hand. "Thank-you so much for rescuing me from that hell. Thank-you for loving me and treating me with respect, like I'm an actual person. And thank-you for marrying me, though I was tainted."

"Aww, it was nothin'."

She nuzzled his cheek, then hugged him. "I'll never leave you."

"I'll never hurt you," he told her, hugging her back, "And I'll never let anyone hurt you again. I promise."

They kissed momentarily before pulling apart.

"Well, Chazz," Alexis said softly, though a there was a mischievous gleam in her golden eyes.

"Well, what?"

"Well…." A smirk lingered on the corner of her lips, "I'm not afraid of being raped anymore. Nightmares don't scare me. Know what I mean?"

He blushed. "Oh, I know exactly what you mean, baby."

"But," she said, laying a finger on his lips, "only if you mean it. Only if you love me."

"I wouldn't have married you if I didn't."

"In that case," she said sweetly, blushing as well, "come love me."

"Oh, I will all right."

The two went upstairs, happy to be with each other and happy to be free of Charles. They wouldn't have to hurt anymore. They wouldn't have to be separated. Now, they could finally be together and love each other, as fate had originally intended for them to be.

THE END

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**A/N: WAAAAAH! T.T (sniffle) it's over…and it's a happy ending! But it was short. I had so much fun writing this fic. Thank you to all my readers. A big shout out to Angel Duelist 153, Lady Vanille, 4thFromTheFurnace, and Agent Malkere, who have been with me the whole way. I love you guys and I hope you'll read my other/upcoming fics. Please submit final reviews. Any thoughts, wishes, or feelings you have bottled up, let 'em out. It's been real. **

**XD I LUUUUUUVVVV UUUUUU!!!!!!**

**P.S. Check out Alternate Endings. Not as good, but please read anyway. : ) **


	12. Alternate Endings

**A/N: These are only alternate endings. In this story, they didn't actually happen. They were ideas I had, but I didn't want my story to end in such a manner. However, I wanted to share them with the public, so here we are.**

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Alternate ending #1: (Takes place after Chapter 5)

Chazz knelt in the snow, flakes falling around him, gathering in icy lumps in his raven-black hair. He gripped the bouquet of wilted red roses so tight, the thorns penetrated his flesh, causing crimson to stain his poor, pale skin.

"I'm so sorry."

As he whispered these words, tears as clear as crystal ran down his cheeks from where they had gathered at the corners of his onyx eyes. Using the sleeve of his black jacket to wipe them away, he heaved a great sigh of bitter disappointment.

"I let you down. I broke my promise. I said I'd never let anything happen to you. But I was wrong. I was too late. And for that I am truly sorry."

He took a deep breath, the frigid air paining his lungs. Then, he looked up at the gray, overcast sky.

"I was a fool. I could never do anything for you. Everything I said was a lie. I had no confidence in myself, and I was right not to. You should never have gotten involved with me. If it weren't for me, you'd still be happy."

He laid the roses in the snow and pressed his forehead against the even colder gray marble of the headstone.

"Because of me," he said in a trembling tone, "you had to die. I'm sorry. I wish I could've proved that I love you. I will always love you. There is one last promise I can make to you, and this one won't be empty; I'll never forget you or the kindness you've shown me, no matter what, for as long as I live."

With these words left lingering in the air, Chazz arose and walked away, turning his back on his one, his only, true love.

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Alternate Ending #2: (Takes place 9 months after Chapter 7)

Alexis fidgeted in the hospital bed, anxious. She looked over at Chazz, and grabbed his hand. He held it reassuringly, though he looked angry. She wondered if it were her fault.

After Charles had raped her, she had learned that she was pregnant, with his offspring. The thought of bearing his child still sickened her. No, she mustn't think of it now. There was nothing she could do.

A few hours ago, she had given birth to this wretched child. She had been under anesthesia at the time, so she had no clue what her child looked like or whether it was a boy or a girl. Nobody had talked to her about it. Although she was angry that she had to become a mother, of his child, she still worried about it. After all, the baby was born of her body, too. But now, she was forever bound to that horrid creature, that demon, Charles.

Chazz had been angry. He complained that she should be carrying his child. However, seeing how nothing could be done, he had to accept it. At that moment, he was the only one by her side. It was he whom had taken her to the hospital. It was he whom had remained at her side, squeezing her hand as she went into labor. However, she didn't know if the staff had shooed him out or not. Once the anesthetic kicked in, her world had gone black.

She began to fret. Why had he not told her anything? This whole time, he had not spoken a word to her. He seemed lost in his own thoughts; something had to be wrong. He had to be angry at her.

"Chazz?" she finally ventured, "I'm sorry."

He looked surprised. "It's not your fault. It's Ok."

"You're mad at me." She whispered.

"No, I'm not mad at you, I'm mad at Charles. Why the hell did this have to happen? This sucks more than I can describe."

"Wh-where's my child?" she asked in a trembling tone with anxious amber eyes.

"Don't worry, and don't panic," he began.

"What happened?!" she panicked.

"Shhhh," he touched his lips to her temple. "Your baby's Ok. They just needed to do some tests because they didn't think everything was quite normal…"

"What's wrong with my baby?"  
"Nothing, don't worry. I'm sure everything's fine."

He slipped his arms around her shoulders. She leaned against him, trembling, still aching and partially incompetent.

Finally, the door opened. Alexis perked up, thinking perhaps she would finally see her child. Instead, they were in for a rather unpleasant, and unexpected, surprise.

"Well, well, Alexis…" Charles snarled, "I see you're here with your _lover_. You adulterer!"

Without warning, he struck out at Alexis, smacking her sharply across the cheek. She cried out in pain and surprise, and a rather large red imprint formed on her cheek.

"Get away from her!" Chazz yelled, stepping between Charles and Alexis.

"You wicked man!" Charles shouted, "You have no right to intervene in a man's affairs with his wife. Now, why are you here with my wife, and what have you done to my child?"

"I don't care if the child is biologically yours," Alexis seethed, "The child belongs to Chazz. Chazz is the father. At least he should be."

"Silence woman! This does not concern you and this is not for you to decide!"

He attempted to strike her again, but Chazz caught his wrist.

"Leave. Her. Alone." Chazz enunciated each word, his dark eyes burning with hatred, warning Charles to step any closer.

"How dare you, bastard!"

"Don't talk to me like that. And don't talk to Alexis so disrespectfully or treat her as such after all she's been through! Now, I suggest you shut up while I call security."

"You have no such right to impede in my visit with my wife. Have you forgotten already? The child is mine! I will have none of this nonsense…"

Chazz gripped Charles wrists tighter as Charles attempted to wrest free. He became more agitated and more animated.

"I said, she's my wife! Mine! Leave now, or I'll call security on you! I'll have none of this! I wish to be unperturbed in my visit, and I will have none of this talk about you being the father! You had no right to her! She was never yours! Though dry and useless to me, being the barren desert wasteland she is, I have complete authority over her and her child, no matter whose it is. I hope you haven't been carrying on with her!"

"I haven't."

"I beg to differ! I know all about you two and your goings-on at Duel Academy. The wretch! The wench! The miserable, tainted, ungodly whore! Sinful heathen, mother of destruction!"

"What did I tell you about--"

"SILENCE, BASTARD!!! I THINK I HAVE EVERY RIGHT--"

Suddenly, Charles gripped his chest, his face red, droplets of sweat forming on his face. Slowly, he sank down to his knees.

"My…heart…"

Chazz did not move to aid him.

"Please…" he reached a desperate hand towards Chazz, "Get…a…doctor…"

Chazz looked coldly down at him. "What goes around, comes around."  
Charles crumpled, then after a loud moan, lay still.

Chazz bent down and felt for a pulse. He shook his head.

Alexis stared down at her lifeless tormentor. She broke down into heavy sobs, relieved. Chazz put his arms around her, comforting her. But, although shaken, she was overjoyed.

------------------------------------------

(Three years later)

Alexis smiled as the little girl with beautiful, curly golden locks ran vivaciously around the backyard. Jasmine, her old friend from Duel Academy, sat on the couch with Alexis, watching the child.

"You know, being a mother isn't so bad."

"I'm glad. I'm really happy that Charles died before Annabelle ever knew him. And Chazz is such a great father…I mean, to marry you and adopt the offspring of that wretched old man…how noble is he?"

Alexis only smiled as a response.

At that moment, Chazz came in through the door. "What a horrible day," he brooded.

Alexis rose to meet him. She threw her arms around his neck and kissed him on the lips.

Jasmine smiled. "Even after being married for three year, I swear, you still act like newlyweds."

"We haven't been married that long," Chazz told her.

"I'll get Annabelle," Alexis told Chazz, "She has something to show you."

Annabelle came inside immediately after Alexis called her. For a three year old, she was quite well behaved and quite competent of her surroundings, thanks to the attention and devotion of her parents.

"Daddy!" she leapt into Chazz's open arms, hugging him and giggling. "I have something for you."

"What is it, sweetie?"

She held up a messy finger painting and smiled widely. "It's for you."

"Aww, thanks. It's beautiful." He kissed the top of her curly head, accepting the gift.

"One other thing, Daddy."

"What is it?"

"I love you."  
"I love you, too, sweetheart."

Alexis smiled at this sentimental moment between her husband and her daughter. She was glad he had accepted her and Annabelle, even if Charles had tried to ruin their lives. The family went out onto the patio, happy to be together and content in knowing that there would be many good times ahead.

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**A/N: Well, that's the end of it. For real. Yep, that's right. No more, so you all can go home now. JK : ) Chances are, you're already home if you're reading this. Unless your parents hate anime, hate the Internet, or hate fanfic. Then you'd be at school, the library, a friend's house, etc. Anyway, I hope you liked the alt ending. Please review these and say which you liked better or which ending you'd like the story to have, whether it be the original, alt 1, or alt 2. See ya next story: )**


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